Interim coach Darren Rizzi brings “juice” to the Saints | Saints

Derek Carr didn’t count exactly how many reps he took Wednesday, but after the New Orleans Saints’ first practice under interim coach Darren Rizzi came to an end, the quarterback was sure of one thing.

“That’s the most games we’ve played in one practice in my career,” Carr said.

On the first day of Rizzmas – kicker Blake Grupe wore a “Merry Rizzmas” T-shirt after his special teams coordinator was promoted – the Saints’ new coach gave them … an extremely fast-paced practice.

Since Dennis Allen was fired earlier this week, Rizzi has wasted no time implementing changes around the Saints. He said he “switched spots” on the coaching staff, moving defensive coach Todd Grantham into an advisory role so pass-rush specialist Brian Young could take over the role. He rearranged the locker room so that players’ lockers are now grouped by position. And he changed the structure of the practice, from introducing a new “activation” period to flipping the side of the field each unit worked on.

Carr described the session as “optimistic” with “non-stop movement.” Not every piece ran at full speed, but Rizzi’s goal was to make everything feel as different as possible.

“To be honest, it felt great to be out there,” Rizzi said. “I felt like we had a little energy, a little juice out there. Whatever you want to call it. I didn’t feel like anyone out there was going through the motions. I felt like there was a lot of energy in it.”

Some of the changes were more symbolic than substantive. For example, the offense and defense changed their usual side of the field, giving the players a new perspective during training. Rizzi joked that before Wednesday, the offense had been practicing on the other end of the field since Bobby Hebert was quarterback in the 1980s. Rizzi said he wanted to “keep everyone on their toes.”

But other steps have also been taken to address the problems that have plagued the Saints this year. Before practice officially began, New Orleans held an “activation period” to properly warm up the players.

The hope, Rizzi said, is that this will help reduce the staggering number of soft tissue injuries the Saints have suffered. Last week, Allen hinted that such a change was imminent, but Rizzi said it was his idea to introduce the point and that he had brought it up several times.

“Imagine you’re working out and you’re not supposed to just go into the weight room and start lifting weights,” Rizzi said. “You go jogging… you shouldn’t just go out and lift weights or pick up a basketball and play basketball. That’s how you tear your Achilles tendon or get injured, right? Activation is more of a sports science thing… so by the time they start training they’re already sweating.”

What is evident about Rizzi is that he has made an effort to meet with a number of players individually. When asked about Alontae Taylor, New Orleans’ top cornerback after the team traded Marshon Lattimore, Rizzi said the two talked about the need for Taylor to continue playing at a high level. The coach also spoke to players like Carr and Chris Olave, the latter battling his fourth concussion in the last three seasons.

“You know exactly where you stand with him,” Carr said. “Everyone in our building knows exactly where they stand, and if they don’t, ask them and they’ll tell you right to your face.”

Rizzi also wants the Saints to talk to each other, so it’s a mess in the locker room.

Only a handful of players were spared from changing lockers, and the changes included quarterbacks. Notably, Carr’s locker was moved from the center of the room to the spot that Drew Brees occupied when he was with the Saints. To the left of Carr’s locker are quarterbacks Jake Haener and Spencer Rattler, who also had to move.

The idea behind the change is simple: When players sit in their natural position, they can move closer together. The Saints’ locker room used to be set up in a similar manner, but the team began spreading players out due to the COVID-19 pandemic — when an entire position group could theoretically be sidelined for a week or two if one of them caught the virus.

“There are some people who have been sitting at their lockers for a long time, so this was a little uncomfortable,” Rizzi said. “But listen: We have to get comfortable being uncomfortable. And that’s where we are now: we’re in an uncomfortable position.”

The Saints are 2-7 and statistically have a better chance of remaining the No. 1 overall pick than making the playoffs. As well-intentioned as Rizzi’s tactics may be, it remains to be seen whether any of the changes actually result in the Saints putting a better product on the field.

But in the locker room, Grupe understands how much influence Rizzi can have. A year ago, the Saints took a chance on Grupe, an undrafted 5-foot-7 kicker who Rizzi believed in enough to edge out veteran Wil Lutz.

“He is the coach who gave me my chance,” said Grupe. “And he’s worked with me a lot over the last year and a half. He knows his stuff. He has high demands and the demands are high for us.”